Only Happy When it Rains
by Morticia Galena
Summary: When Daybreakers and vampires alike are slaughtered in a small town the remaining are forced to band together to find the pyscho. Shauna Arlin is thrown with much hated vampire Chase Redfern.They despise each other, so they shouldn't care if something hap
1. Default Chapter

Part 1  
  
The rain was heavy, thunder crashed and lightning boomed. The silent figure walked through the rain, no hood, or coat of any sort, enjoying the water as it crashed over her, soaking her to the bone.   
  
It was such a beautiful storm. She loved storms. She danced along the deserted road, singing to herself. Her voice was lost in the noises of the downpour. No one paid attention to her.  
  
No one ever had.   
  
Well, only once...  
  
Once was enough.   
  
The beginning and the end of everything for her. Two brief shining months of happiness and then everything had gone to hell.   
  
Well, they'd pay. They'd all pay.  
  
* * *  
  
Part 2  
  
Jarred Redfern was annoyed. He hated the damn rain. His car had stalled at the side of the road. After the amount of money he'd paid for his Mercedes 280XL he wouldn't have expected the damn thing to stall on him. He kicked the tires in frustration. "Damn fucking piece of shit," he swore at the car.   
  
The battery on his Nokia cell phone was dead as well. Typical. What was the matter with these things? You pay excessive prices for technology and stuff to look and then when you need them the stupid things don't work!  
  
Jarred was soaked already from standing around in the storm. He looked around in frustration. He could see headlights gleaming through the rain. Before he knew what he was doing he had stepped out in the middle of the road and waving at the car to stop.  
  
The girl inside the small blue BMW that pulled up was small, with a mop of unbrushed blonde hair, with strange reddish eyes. An idea was filling his mind. Her car was nice enough...  
She rolled down the window and looked at his dead car. "Problems?" she asked.   
  
He gave her one of his best smiles. "Yeah, damn thing won't run. You got a cell phone I could borrow?"  
  
She nodded and reached for her purse from the backseat. "Sure. Hop in."  
  
Jarred grinned, admiring her swan like neck. He was getting a new car and a snack. Maybe this wasn't such a bad night after all.   
  
She handed him her phone, studying him for a while. He looked at her, wondering why she looked vaguely familiar. "Do I know you?" she asked.   
  
He tilted his head to one side, wondering. "I don't know. Why?"  
  
She shrugged slender shoulders. "You look familiar is all. Do you go to school?"  
  
Jarred shrugged himself. He may be a Redfern vampire, but since he was only eighteen his damn stupid parents made him attend the local high school. The need for Redferns to attend human school was totally beyond him. "Occasionally."  
  
"Black Falls High?" she asked. She sounded somewhat eager, and almost excited.  
  
"Yeah," he said non-committedly. He wondered if she was in a few of his classes. Maybe that's where he'd seen her. One of the girls who was always admiring him, but wasn't worth paying attention to.   
  
"You're Jarred Redfern, aren't you?" she said, her red eyes twinkling, strangely eerie in the dim interior of the car.   
  
He wasn't really surprised she knew who he was. He turned to her, fangs glimmering. "It doesn't really matter who you are, you're just my next meal."  
  
The girl laughed harshly. "I don't think so," she said.  
  
Jarred never saw the stake she pulled out, hidden somewhere convenient for her to grab. All he felt was shock and surprise, then nothing.   
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"Your next meal, my ass," the red-eyed girl muttered. She smiled. No one would recognise her now. Glamour was such a handy spell to learn.   
  
She got out of the car she'd hotwired. She'd been following Mr Redfern here, a little magic had disabled his precious car and annoying cell phone. She didn't know why she bothered herself. No one ever called her.  
  
She pulled Jarred's mummified body out and dumped it inside his car. She could feel her hatred welling and boiling as she glared at him. He'd been one of them...  
  
She shook her head, not wanting to think about why she'd had to kill him, just knowing that she'd had to. He was dead now, anyway.  
  
The rain seeped unto her skin, cooling her, calming her. Making her smile.   
  
But the rain wouldn't wash away what had happened.   
  
The only solace she would get would be destroying those responsible...  
  
Well, she had already put her plan in motion.  
  
* * *   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. Parts 3+4

Part 3  
  
When Shauna Arlin arrived at school the following morning a sort of excited buzz was running through the students. She looked around, wondering what was happening. Black Falls was a Night Person's town, but the stirrings was amongst the humans too.  
  
"What's going on?" she asked her friend Senna as she sat down in first period maths class.  
  
"Didn't you hear?" Senna asked.   
  
Shauna smiled faintly, pushing her purple fringe out her eyes. "Since I'm asking I obviously didn't."  
  
"Jarred Redfern was *murdered* last night," Senna said, her eyes glowing with hidden amusement,  
  
Shauna laughed. "Good. Bastard got what he deserved. Who got him?"  
  
Senna shrugged. "Don't know. But it was someone who knew he was a...you know."  
  
Shauna was surprised. There was a close-knit unit of Daybreakers and vampire hunters in Black Falls, and they all knew who they were. Someone new had come? Who knew about vampires?  
  
As far as Shauna was concerned, it was a good thing. Glancing around she could see a few of the popular Night People eyeing her and Senna suspiciously.   
  
They knew there were vampire hunters in the school, but so far hadn't been able to get any of them. So if someone else wanted to join in the game that was fine with Shauna. She could feel eyes probing her back, and after glancing around, could see no one in particular looking at her.  
  
She wondered if the Night People knew *she* was one of the hunters. She was very careful to keep herself covered and hidden. In a town run by Night People the last thing you wanted if you were a vampire hunter was to be discovered.   
  
"So what do you want to do about this new hunter?" Senna asked.  
  
Shauna just shrugged. "Let them do whatever they want," she said with her lip curled. "The less monsters, the better."  
  
She didn't know why that statement suddenly bothered her so much.  
  
* * *  
  
Part 4  
  
Chase Redfern didn't see what the fuss was all about. So Jarred had gotten himself staked. Big deal. He was a stuck up bastard who had gotten what he deserved. Of course, Jared's girlfriend Dakota Harman was crying her eyes out. She was clinging to Chase's arm, sniffing.  
  
"Oh get over it," he snorted with contempt. Women. They were impossible sometimes.   
  
Dakota looked up at him, hooded violet eyes shimmering with tears. "You're so heartless," she sniffled, turning away from him to cry on the shoulder of her best friend Luna Blackthorn.   
  
Luna sighed, shaking her head and glaring at Chase, who looked innocently back at her. "What?"  
  
"Be a little nicer," Luna hissed at him.   
  
Chase turned away in disgust. He didn't do nice. Where was the fun in nice? He noticed a couple of the girls at the front of the classroom looked rather pleased, despite the shocked buzz echoing round the school.  
  
"You think it was the vampire hunters?" Marlon Blackthorn asked in a low tone.  
  
Chase just shrugged dismissively. "So what if it was? They did us a favour."  
  
Marlon smiled dryly. "I guess." His faint smile turned into a smirk. "Dakota's just become available and needs a shoulder to cry on."  
  
"Don't you have a girlfriend?" Chase asked with amusement. "Gina's gonna be pissed."  
  
"Gina'll just have to learn to share," Marlon said, turning to comfort Dakota.   
  
Chase shook his head and sank down in his seat. The murder didn't bother him in the slightest. He looked around the classroom, eyeing the other students. He was certain some of them were vampire hunters, and damned Daybreakers, but wasn't sure which ones.   
  
Someone he'd never noticed before at the back, a girl with unusual red eyes was sitting there with an expression almost as blank as his own. Something about her disturbed him, but he didn't know what. He turned away, frowning. Then he dismissed his train of thought. What was he thinking? She was just a human. No one important.   
* * *  
The girl with the red eyes whom no one noticed sat at the back of the classroom, in a very good mood. She was pleased seeing the wimpy little rich girl Dakota Harman sobbing her eyes out. Bitch.   
  
She could almost feel the other girl's pain, and it gave her a high of some sort. This was much more fun than she'd thought.   
  
Her eyes scanned the classroom, deciding to pick out her next target. For once, being a nobody was actually working to her advantage. None of them would have the slightest idea what was going on until too late.  
  
* * *  



	3. Parts 5 and 6

Part 5  
  
Iris Hamilton's nose wrinkled in disgust, not understanding how vampires could be such idiots. She shook her head slightly, listening carefully for sounds. When she heard a crunch of glass behind her she whirled around, slamming her stake into the heart of the idiot monster who had tried to sneak up on her.  
  
She stood back, arms folded in satisfaction as she watched the vamp jibber uselessly, his eyes go wide with shocked surprise and anger.   
  
"Life's a bitch, isn't it?" Iris said to the dying vamp, amused as she watched his skin turn leathery, shrink in on itself, withering and fading away until there was nothing left but a pile of old bones. She smirked at them. "Asshole," she muttered, retrieving her stake.   
  
She started heading out the alley, deciding she may as well go back to headquarters and see what was happening. The vampire hunters in town were all rather pleased over the death of Jarred Redfern, a spoiled stuck up brat who had gotten what he deserved. They knew the Night People suspected them, and had been warned to lay low for a little while.  
  
But Iris didn't really care. She killed vampires and she enjoyed killing vampires. They were scum. Monsters. They deserved what they'd got.   
  
A footstep sounded behind her and she whirled around again, ready to attack whoever was sneaking up on her. Just as quickly Iris pulled back her attack looking at the small girl with dark hair flying as she ran towards her, a wild look of terror in her red eyes.   
  
"Hey, are you okay? What happened?" Iris asked, concerned. Her eyes peeled the darkness for signs of vampires or other Night People.   
  
  
"Help me," the girl whispered. "They..." She glanced back the way Iris had just come and shuddered.   
  
"It's okay," Iris said soothingly. "I'm the good guy. You stay here and I'll go get them." She started down the alley, hands gripped tightly on her stake, making the girl hide in a recessed doorway of a closed down shop.  
  
Cautiously, Iris looked around, but could see no signs of neither vampires or shapeshifters. She was confused, venturing further on, but not wanting to leave the girl alone for long.  
  
Finally, she decided there was nothing there. She headed back to the red-eyed girl. "There's nothing there. They must have run away."  
  
The girl had stopped shaking, and looked rather cool and collected. She was leaning against the door, smiling a little. "I know."  
  
Iris looked at her, confused. "Huh?"  
  
Without warning the girl suddenly hurled a palm-full of something orange at Iris. Caught off guard, Iris stumbled and fell, losing her grip on her stake. The last thing she saw was amused red eyes glinting in the darkness as the girl killed her with her own stake.   
  
* * *  
The red-eyed girl smiled watching as the vampire hunter died. Murdered by her own weapon. It didn't matter to her that the vampire hunter had claimed to be "one of the good guys".   
  
She scowled, her expression darkening, as she remembered how the "good guys" had been just as responsible. In her opinion, Daybreak was no better than Night World. They were all killers, they all deserved to die.  
  
Well, she thought, her lips curling. They're going to.   
  
She was going to make sure of it. She could feel a raging heat and anger burning inside her. A loud clap of thunder banged overhead. She looked up at the sky, smiling as she felt the rain coming down, cooling her. Whistling cheerfully, she walked off into the darkness.  
  
* * *  
Part 6  
  
Shauna sat in class the next morning, not really paying attention to the lecture. The entire school was buzzing about a second murder, this time the murder of Iris Hamilton. She glanced over at the Night People, who in turn, looked rather smug.   
  
She scowled in anger and fury. This was retaliation. They were pissed because they thought the vampire hunters had killed that idiot Jarred Redfern, so they'd got back at them by killing Iris with her own stake.   
  
She clenched her fists in fury, it was taking every ounce of self control she had not to storm over there and start a fight here in school. The consequences of that, she didn't even want to think about.   
  
She sat through class, her expression thunderous. When the bell rang to signal lunch she snatched up her stuff and stalked out, not caring who she knocked over.  
  
She found the other Daybreakers and vampire hunters in an empty classroom, ready for discussion.   
  
"So when are we killing them?" Shauna demanded, slamming the door.   
  
Senna looked up, frowning. "We don't even know which one of them did it."  
  
"It doesn't matter!" Shauna raged. "They're scum! Kill them all."  
  
Thia Harman sighed, sitting back in her chair, a mass of golden hair spilling down her back. "Why don't we all calm down and look at this objectively," she said tiredly. From the tone of her voice, Shauna guessed that it wasn't the first time an angry shouting match had broken out.  
  
She scowled, sitting down herself. "What's there to look at? They did it. They had to."  
  
"We didn't kill Jarred," Senna said with a frown.   
  
Thia looked at her, and then addressed the rest of the group. "Did anyone here kill Jarred Redfern?"  
  
There were mutterings and shaking of heads. The group was every Daybreaker in the small area, and not one of them had killed Jarred.   
  
The door to the classroom bust open. Shauna was on her feet, along with Senna and Thia at the site of Luna and Marlon Blackthorn, Dakota Harman, Chase Redfern lurking at the edges, and a few other Night People.   
  
"I think we need to have a little talk," Luna said, walking into the classroom without being invited and tossing back her white-blond hair. She sat down in one of the chairs opposite Thia and glared.  
  
The other Night People walked in, but remained standing.   
  
Thia sat there, looking at Luna, arms folded. "Talk."  
  
"You killed Jarred," Dakota said, clenching small fists. Her violet eyes were still red-rimmed.  
  
Shauna looked at her in disgust, wondering how she could survive in the Night World and Circle Midnight. She looked like a stiff wind would blow her over.   
  
"We didn't kill Jarred," Senna said, matching the Night People's glares.  
  
"Oh come on," Marlon snorted. "Do you really think we're that stupid?"  
  
"Yes," Shauna said with a sneer. "Jarred obviously was to get himself staked.  
  
"Bitch!" With a shriek of anger and fury Dakota raised her palms above her head, a glow of orange fire starting to grow between her palms. She hurled the blast at Shauna, who ducked out the way. The blast passing harmlessly over her head. Dakota shrieked in rage and ran for Shauna instead. Shauna shook her head in disgust. What a dummy.   
  
She simply stepped aside, Dakota's momentum taking her forward, past Shauna. She wasn't much of a fighter as she tried a second time. Shauna was getting rather bored, and threw a snap kick to Dakota's chin, sending her flying backwards.   
  
A few other Night People started to get mad, and looked like a they might start a real fight. Shauna grinned, ready for action. But to her disappointment Luna held up her hand.   
  
"Leave it, people," she said, irritated. "We didn't come to start a fight."  
  
"We didn't?" Chase asked with a dry smile.   
  
"You want a fight, come on then," Shauna taunted. The sudden action had put her in a very good mood. She felt sure that if all the Daybreakers banded together now they would have been able to finish off the Night People.   
  
"No," Thia said sharply. "No fights. Not here in school."  
  
  
  
"So you didn't kill Jarred, none of you did," Luna said, getting back to the point. "And I can tell you right now that none of us killed your hunter."  
  
"So what are we saying?" Shauna asked, her own momentum dying a little. "That there's a new hunter in town that's killing both Daybreakers *and* Night Worlders, regardless of sides?"  
  
There was an uncomfortable silence as everyone sat there looking at each other. Tension was heavy amongst them all. But that was what it looked like.  
  
"So what do you suggest we do?" Luna asked Thia.  
  
Thia looked unhappy, but just shrugged. "My guess is we put aside our differences for this once and get this loony."  
  
"Who says they're a loony?" Chase muttered. "Most serial killers are actually quite smart."  
  
"You would know," Dakota muttered.  
  
Chase glared at her, but his lips were smiling. Shauna was not happy at all. She despised the idea of working with Night Worlders. But it looked as if they had no choice on this one.   
  
* * *  
The red-eyed girl was not happy. She sat in last class, waiting for the final bell to ring. The sun was shining brightly outside, which made her scowl. But the good news was, her plan was going very well.   
  
So far, no one suspected she had anything to do with it. None of them had even glanced twice at her. All well and good for her.   
  
She sighed sadly. She knew that even if she did pull this off, it wouldn't change anything. The past still would have happened and there would be nothing she could do...  
  
A single tear fell down her cheek. No way...  
  
She shook her head abruptly, pushing away the memories that were trying to emerge. No. She wouldn't think about it.  
  
But a faint smile started to grow as clouds covered the awful sun. She would think about something that did cheer her up.  
  
Killing.  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. Parts 7+8

Part 7  
  
Chase was more irritated than anything at the idea of a killer that stalked both the Daybreakers and the Night World, and being paired up with that over egotistical vampire hunter Shauna Somethingorother was just annoying.   
  
He sighed with irritation, heading home after feeding. The thrill of hunting and blood had put him in a little bit of a better mood. Personally, he didn't see what all the fuss was about. As long as the girl didn't get him that was all that mattered.  
  
He hadn't gone more than about a hundred yards when he realised he was being followed. He looked around, but the road he was walking down was deserted. That's the cliché, isn't it? He thought with a dry smile.   
  
It wasn't the fact that he could hear someone coming, see anyone lurking. It was more of a *feeling*. He stared into the darkness. Annoyed that even with his vampiric vision he couldn't see anyone.   
  
He sighed, irritated, and walked on. When he reached a crossroad, a girl detached herself from the shadows. She wasn't anyone he knew. She was small, not very impressive. The only striking thing about her were unusual red eyes that glowed devil-like in the night.   
  
She glanced over at him, and smiled faintly as they waited for the light to turn green as traffic shot across the intersection. He managed a weak smile back.   
  
He wasn't sure why this girl suddenly disturbed him so much. There was an aura about her. Something dark and unnatural.   
  
He wondered vaguely if she were a Night Person. He didn't ask. When the light changed she kept pace with him as he headed over the road and turned down a darker street.  
  
Was she following him or something? He stopped and turned to glare at her, ready to kill her if necessary.  
  
She smiled at him, reached into her sleeve, and before he knew what was happening. She was lunging at him with a stake. Alarmed and with a sudden rush of panic, empowered by vampire speed he turned and ran.   
  
But the girl was shooting after him. She could run as fast as he could, so that ruled out the human thing. He didn't understand it. Who the hell was this bitch?  
  
He scrambled down back alleys, short cuts, anywhere he could think to get away with her. Something he didn't see tripped him and he went flying.  
He smacked his head on something and fell flat on his back. With a leap like a cat, the red-eyed girl was on top of him, eyes glowing, stake held high.  
  
She studied him for several seconds, seeming unhappy and shocked. "Lucas?" she whispered.   
  
Without thinking about it Chase suddenly bucked like a wilder-beast catching her off guard and throwing her off. With swift movements he shot up and over the fence and into the safety of his apartment building.   
  
He didn't feel completely safe until he was inside his own apartment, the door locked. Why had she called him Lucas? Who the hell was Lucas? Who the hell was *she*, for that matter?  
  
But burned in his mind, was the image of her red devil eyes.   
  
* * *  
Part 8  
  
Damn! Damn! DAMN! Shit! The red-eyed girl stormed around her apartment in fury, smashing and breaking anything she could get her angry hands on. Her rage filled her need to destroy and maim and hurt.  
  
How could she have let herself slip like that? How could she? Someone had gotten away. It infuriated her. She had thought she could do anything she wanted, but that asshole of a vampire had gotten away. Ugh.   
  
She stood in the centre of a living room that looked as if a tornado had hit it. Now what? Rage still bubbled inside her, and the peaceful night wasn't helping at all.   
  
She grabbed her stake and coat and headed out again, deciding she would just slaughter whoever crossed her path. She had been so stupid!  
  
He couldn't have been Lucas. Never. Lucas was dead. Very dead...  
  
She could feel tears starting to spill from her eyes at the memory of him. No. No. She wouldn't think about him now. But it was hard not to. It was him she was doing this for...  
  
A couple walking down the street opposite her caught her eye. It was late, and they thought they were alone. She allowed herself a smirk. One was Daybreak, one was Night World, a little forbidden relationship that no one was supposed to know about.   
  
  
  
  
Slipping through the shadows and the darkness, she sneaked up behind them. They didn't even hear her they were so wrapped up in each other. Without warning she suddenly plunged the steak into the heart of the male vampire. She laughed as the human girl screamed as the vamp's form began to fall in on itself, skin shrinking over the bones.   
  
The girl turned to look at her, and her fear was very amusing. She didn't get very far before the red-eyed girl polished her off too, charged with the thrill of death plus the strength of her previous anger.   
  
She smiled, feeling the rage seep out of her now. And as it did, clouds covered the moon and as she walked home, the rain began to fall.  
  
* * *  
  
Shauna scowled furiously at Chase, who sat across from her, tapping his fingers on the desk, looking rather irritated. She would have rather died than been stuck with him. But due to another murder last night, a couple of both Daybreak and Night World, it became clear that their killer didn't care which side he - or she - got providing they were able to kill someone.   
  
So a truce had been called. They would work together until they caught this psycho and took care of them.   
  
They sat in an empty classroom at lunch, not really wanting to mix in amongst the regular students, just in case that someone got the wrong impression. That had been her idea, and Chase had been willing to agree.  
  
He looked distracted and preoccupied.   
  
"What aren't you saying?" she demanded finally. "You're hiding something."  
  
He sighed, and looked at her, ever changing Redfern eyes a confused murky blue. "She attacked me last night," he said finally.   
  
Shauna couldn't help feeling a little amused, but also a little concerned at the same time. "She attacked you? It's a she?" That part was very amusing. A big bad Redfern boy had been attacked by a girl.  
  
He glared at her, as if reading her thoughts. "Before you ask, I can't really remember what she looked like, I don't know if that was some sort of clouding spell she did deliberately so she couldn't be remembered. But..." He trailed off and frowned.   
  
Shauna looked at him, her amusement fading. A witch, maybe? "But...?" she asked.  
  
"She called me Lucas," he said finally.   
Shauna was confused. "Who's Lucas?" she asked.  
  
He shrugged. "How the hell should I know? She knocked me down, looked at me, called me that, but I threw her off and bolted the hell out of there."  
  
Shauna frowned. At least they had something to go on now. "You don't remember anything about her?" she asked.  
  
"Eyes," he said simply.   
  
Shauna glared at him, confused. Could he be more vague? "What?"  
  
"She had red eyes," he answered. "That's all that really stood out about her."  
  
So they had a psychotic female killer, who despised both Daybreak and Night World, with red eyes, who thought Chase was someone called Lucas. That didn't make any sense.   
  
"So now what?" Chase asked her moodily.   
  
Shauna shrugged. "I guess we find out what we can about anyone named Lucas." She headed off to find Thia and get a research party set up. But the question bugged the hell out of her. Who was Lucas? What was his significance?   
  
* * *  
  



	5. Parts 9+10

Part 9  
  
Shauna sighed with impatience. There was nothing worse than sitting around and waiting when there was a psychotic killer on the loose.   
  
She sat in the library of the Daybreak house with the rest of the research party, pulling up anything they could on anyone with red eyes or anyone named Lucas.   
  
"Got it!" Senna said suddenly, starting them all. Everyone crowded around her computer terminal as she flipped through a couple of files. Senna opened one of the folders, and pulled out a photo of a boy with blond hair, dark eyes, and a bright, handsome smile.   
  
"My God," Luna whispered. "It's almost uncanny."  
  
"Poor guy," Shauna said sympathetically. She still couldn't believe it. The guy was almost the spitting image of Chase. But there was something different about each of them. They would have been twins. This guy looked like he might be Daybreak, he had a certain charm about him, while Chase, looked like he could be sheathed in darkness.   
  
Chase stood a little apart from the group, scowling at them, clearly not impressed by having someone else who looked like him.   
  
"So what's this got to do with our killer?" Thia asked, tapping delicate pink nails against the desk.   
  
"Look at this," Senna said, holding out another photograph. "Chase, you might want to come see this too."  
  
Chase frowned and walked over from where he was sitting, leaning on Shauna, he looked over his shoulder. She could feel him stiffen. "That's her," he said. He shook his head. "But it's not. There's...I don't know. Something different..."  
  
Shauna studied the second picture. The girl was just average, ordinary face, okay smile, brown hair falling to her shoulders. Her eyes were an ordinary green.  
  
Chase frowned again. "But her eyes were *red*," he said. "Very, very red."  
  
Shauna exchanged glances with the others. Someone who could change their appearance? That meant they would never be able to catch her if she could do that...  
  
"Glamour," Dakota suggested from where she sat sulking in a corner, for once contributing something useful rather than whining about how unfair this was.   
  
Shauna was confused. "Huh?"  
  
"Glamour is a witch spell," Thia explained, pushing her blonde hair out her eyes. "It's a trick to alter perceptions, a visual spell, really easy, even humans can sometimes do glamour. You can, like, cover a zit, or change your hair colour..."  
  
"Eye colour?" Luna asked.   
  
"Well we've got a pissed off witch with red eyes going around slaughtering everyone," Marlon said, seeming amused.   
  
Thia glared at him. "This isn't funny," she snapped.  
  
"Maybe she should kill you and do us all favour," Shauna snapped. This stupid Night Worlders were really starting to bug the hell out of her. She couldn't wait until this was over, then they could go back to hating each other.   
  
"So who are they?" Thia asked Senna.  
  
Senna consulted her files again. "The boy is Lucas Redfern, a Night World vampire. He was being hunted down by both Daybreak and Night World. Despite his innocent good looks he was supposed to be a monster, cold, cruel, and a killer. That's why Daybreak wanted him. Night World wanted him because he'd apparently found a human soulmate, and they weren't happy about it."  
  
"Miss Red-Eyes," Chase supplied unhelpfully.   
  
Senna nodded. "Yeah, she was human, her name is..." She flipped through her files. "Leila Feist."   
  
"Gee, how apt," Luna muttered with heavy sarcasm.   
  
Shauna frowned, looking at her. "Huh?"  
  
"Leila means 'night,' " Luna said simply.  
  
Oh. Made sense. So it seemed that the Night Worlders and the Daybreaks found Lucas and killed him, and the soulmate escaped. And now it looked like she was getting her revenge.   
  
"So even though we know who she is, and if she can do glamour, then we're no closer than we were to finding her when this whole fucking thing started," Luna said with an irritated sigh.   
  
The others exchanged glances. Reluctantly, Shauna realised that she had a point. They had one part of the mystery solved, but there was still another piece of the puzzle missing.   
  
They just had to find it.   
  
* * *  
The red-eyed girl could feel distress welling as she stood outside the Daybreak library. She couldn't believe it. They had almost got it figured out. She hurried away, head down so no one could see her face. She would have thought it would be harder to get into the Daybreak House, but, she thought with a smile, glamour could be so handy.   
  
She headed home, stressed out and unhappy, even though a cooling rain was seeping into her skin, soaking her to the bone. She knew even once it was over it would never bring Lucas back to her.   
  
But it didn't matter. She found the rain oddly comforting, washing away all her confusion. Only a few more, then she could end it...for good.   
  
* * *  
  
Part 10  
  
Shauna sighed, heading home the next evening. So far they were no closer to figuring out who Leila Feist was. How could they if the girl had glamour at her disposal? She could be anyone, and they'd never even know it.   
  
The Night People weren't being very helpful except sitting around and making sarcastic comments. Shauna wished Leila would come along and kill them to teach them a lesson for being jerks.   
  
The thought made her lip curl.   
  
She groaned, irritated, as a light pattering of rain started. Ugh. She hated rain. It always out a damper on everything, (pardoning the pun).   
  
She glanced around, surprised to find the street she was walking down eerily empty. Now whenever that happened in the movies, it generally meant someone was doomed.   
  
Shauna could feel a slight spark of nervousness growing in her stomach. She reached under her jacket sleeve, taking hold of her concealed stake, ready to pull it out at a moment's notice, just in case.   
  
She glanced around a second time, hearing the soft sound of footsteps splashing through the puddles on the pavement behind her. She quickly hid her stake, almost blushing as the small, meek looking girl passed by her.   
  
She sighed and shook her head. What the hell was the matter with her? She was *never* nervous. A nervous hunter was a dead hunter. She started walking again, wondering if she should apologise to the girl for acting insane.   
  
But the girl was gone.  
  
Shauna blinked in surprise. How the hell did that happen? What -   
  
Her question was never completed as something hard hit her from behind. Shauna grunted as agony enflamed behind her eyes. She didn't pass out though. She rolled away from her attacker.  
  
Red eyes glared angrily at her. Shit. She ducked out of the way as the girl ran at her. Grunting again Shauna waited until the girl was almost upon her, before delivering a roundhouse kick to her face, sending her flying backwards. Stake in hand, she carefully headed over to where the girl had fallen, temporarily dazed, ready to plunge it into her heart.   
  
The girl sprang forward, taking her by surprise, knocking her backwards. Being human, Shauna was at a disadvantage. Winded, she couldn't move as the girl came close to her.  
But before the bitch could polish her off, someone plucked her off and threw her against the wall. The girl shrieked in rage. Shauna blinked dazedly through the rapidly pouring rain, and stared in surprise at Chase Redfern as he and the girl fought.  
  
The girl, realising she was outnumbered, hissed at them both, and took off into the night before anyone could stop her.   
  
Chase glanced over at her, not bothering to offer to help her up. Shauna glared at him. Jerk. What the hell was the matter with him?   
  
Chase sighed with irritation. "How about thanks for saving my miserable life?" he said moodily as he headed towards her.  
  
Shauna scowled. "I could have handled her."  
  
He smirked down at her where she lay in a pile of broken boxes and trash. "She seemed to be doing a pretty good job of handling *you*."  
  
Shauna didn't even bother replying to that. She held out a hand. "Help me up, you arrogant son of a bitch."  
  
"I resent that," he said, pretending to be hurt. He reached down to help her up.  
  
And as his bare hand touched hers...  
  
Her mind exploded from within.   
  
* * *   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	6. Pats 11+12

Part 11  
  
It was as if all her nerves inside her brain had been lit up at once, like fireworks sparking. The result was a fizzling white light that started out small, but was slowly growing inside.   
  
She could feel herself being pulled towards Chase, into his arms, pressing herself against him. Part of her was screaming silently in protest, but another part of her couldn't resist the light.  
  
The next thing she felt was his lips on hers, a feeling of heat and fire running along her nerves.  
  
But the feeling was deepening, intensifying. She could see images swirling around in her mind, see things that she had never seen before, she feel feelings that didn't belong to her.  
  
Then she realised...they were Chase's feelings, his memories. And she knew as she was being drawn into his mind, he was being pulled into her.   
  
It was a sensation she could never describe in words no matter how hard she could describe, what it was like to be drawn into another person's *mind*, to almost see through their eyes...  
  
~What *is* this?~ she thought.  
  
~It's called the Soulmate Principle.~  
  
It was Chase's voice, but it wasn't out loud, it was inside her head. She hadn't been thinking for him to read, but when you were trapped in a world inside another person's mind, it kind of just made sense that your thoughts were available to the other person.   
  
Shauna frowned a little. She had heard of the Soulmate Principle, all Daybreakers had, but as far as she had been concerned, it was just soppy nonsense.   
  
But considering the idea of a vampire and a vampire hunter being destined for each other...it was laughable really.   
  
"How do we stop this?" she asked, using her real voice, and just like that, the illusion was shattered, and they were thrown back onto a deserted street in the pouring rain.   
  
They just stood there staring at each other. Shauna felt embarrassed and almost awkward. So. The vampire in front of her was the one person meant for her for all eternity.   
  
"So now what?" he asked.   
  
"I don't know," she admitted in a small voice. Did she love him? She wasn't sure. Ten minutes ago she would have almost laughed until she'd died if someone had asked her that.  
  
But now...everything seemed different, yet it was the same as well.   
  
Chase sighed, irritated if anything. "I really don't see what the fuss about this soulmate thing is," he said moodily.   
  
Shauna stared at him, remembering why she hated the guy. What an arrogant stuck up jerk! She hoped that Leila with the red eyes would come back and get him.   
  
"Why don't we just go home and pretend this never happened?" he said finally.   
  
"Fine by me," she snapped. "Go."  
  
He went. Just like that, in the blink of an eye, she was gone, left alone in the rain. She sighed and decided to head home. There was nothing else to do, really.   
  
Men, she thought sourly. The most absurd species created yet.  
  
* * *  
The red-eyed girl paced up and down, trying to contain her seething fury. She was angry enough that even the rain didn't sooth her. She threw a glass at the wall and watched it shattering.   
  
Damn. This was the second time her victims had gotten away from her. She sighed heavily, slumping down in a chair. Everything was going wrong.   
  
She sighed, wondering if she should just say the hell with it and end it now...  
  
No. She stood up, shaking her head abruptly. What was she thinking? She would never give up. She was going to try again.   
  
An idea for the final act was already blooming in her twisted little mind.   
  
* * *   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Part 12  
  
Chase sighed with irritation. Everything seemed to irritate him lately. If this psychotic killer wasn't bad enough, and being forced to work with stupid annoying Daybreakers, and to top it all off, the vampire hunter was his soulmate.  
  
Being soulmated with a vampire hunter. What vampire in their right mind would want *that?*  
  
He shook his head, wondering why everything had to always go wrong. He had never believed in soulmates before now. He had always hoped for a nice, sexy vampire girl.   
  
But instead, he got a snotty hunter who was a pain in the ass. He groaned inwardly, heading up the steps to his apartment. He felt like killing someone. That would cheer him up, but whenever he started contemplating the hard - or maybe not-so-hard - task of who, his thoughts started returned to Shauna, and he realised, with horror, he was worried that she would be mad at him.  
  
He shook his head, taking out his keys. Maybe he'd settle for a night of getting nicely drunk instead. He decided to settle on that, wondering if he should head to the local 7-11 and stock up his alcohol supply.   
  
He opened the door to his apartment, and immediately realised he wasn't alone. There was a very distinct *presence* in the room that didn't belong there.   
  
He scowled, his night hunter eyes glaring through the darkness. Senses about him, he moved slowly around the apartment, trying to locate the source of the sense...  
  
No one seemed to be there.   
  
What the...?  
  
A sound behind him made him whirl around but before he could do anything a blast of power hit him along with something hard slamming against his head.   
  
The last thing he saw before he blacked out was a flash of red eyes.  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  



	7. Parts 13-14

Part 13  
  
When Shauna went to the Daybreak meeting the next evening she was a little surprised to find Chase wasn't there. She hadn't seen him at school either. But then again, why should she care?  
  
She didn't, she kept telling herself. He was an arrogant, stuck up jerk who didn't deserve her as his soulmate. It was her opinion that she could do better.  
  
Luna was there with Dakota and Marlon, Thia, Senna and one or two other Daybreakers. They seemed to have dwindled in numbers severely. Maybe there were more dead that they didn't know about.  
  
Quite a few people were getting missing. It was beginning to look like Leila Feist had lost control of herself now.   
  
She had attacked without thought the other night. Or maybe with thought, Shauna didn't know. But she had survived an attack.  
  
But only because Chase happened to be in the right place at the right time and had saved you, a small voice in the back of her mind pointed out.   
  
"What's going on?" she asked, noticing they were all quieter than usual. Even Dakota wasn't moaning or bitching about anything.   
  
"Chase is missing," Thia said quietly. "The girl broke into his apartment last night."  
  
Shauna felt her blood run cold. The psycho had Chase. Was he dead already? But why change style now? She'd never kidnapped any of her previous victims.   
  
She could feel her face whitening, and noticed Senna and Thia exchanging glances. They looked at her, clearly wanting to know what was wrong with her.   
  
"We're soulmates," she admitted, feeling her face flushing a little.   
  
Thia and Senna looked at each other again, Dakota looked unhappy, if she started whining again about how she and Jarred had been soulmates, Shauna would punch her.   
  
But then again, Shauna was now beginning to understand how Dakota was feeling. She didn't understand it, and wasn't sure she really wanted to. But she knew if something happened to Chase, if this bitch killed him, a part of her would die too.  
  
She had convinced herself he meant nothing to her, he was scum, a bloodsucker of a race that needed to be wiped out so they couldn't terrorize innocent humans anymore.   
  
But who the hell was she trying to kid?  
  
A knock on the door brought her out of her reverie. She looked around to see Senna had stood up and was opening the door to the meeting room.   
  
"Senna? What are you doing?" Luna asked, sounding rather amused.   
  
Shauna looked over to see what was going on. Senna gestured for someone to come in. Shauna felt her eyes bug along with the others.   
  
The boy who came into the room could have been Chase's twin. But he wasn't Chase. And if she remembered from the picture, this had to be...  
  
"Guys, meet Lucas Redfern," Senna said.  
  
* * *  
Part 14  
  
Shauna just stared at Lucas Redfern along with everyone else. She just couldn't believe it. Their research had told him she was dead.  
  
"Do you know you're soulmate's a psychopath?" Marlon said dryly, breaking the silence.   
  
Lucas was irritated. "Don't blame me, I didn't do it to her, you guys did."  
  
Shauna could feel her impatience rising. This guy was even more irritating than Chase had been. And just as arrogant. "How'd you figure that one?" she snorted.   
  
"Leila's a lost witch," he answered. "The Night World were pissed at I had a human soulmates, you damned Daybreakers were just pissed at me in general, and we never even got the chance to actually say that Leila was a lost witch and had every right to know about the Night World."  
  
"Explain the part where you were dead and then you're not dead," Luna asked, smiling faintly.   
  
Lucas sighed, as if dealing with idiots too stupid to put two and two together. "I faked it," he answered, rather smugly.  
  
Shauna and Thia exchanged glances. So they had this guy on their hands now. Could they trust him? It didn't seem like they had a choice, if he was the only one who could communicate with the psycho.   
"So what's she actually been doing?" Lucas asked, taking a seat without being invited.  
  
"Killing off Night Worlders and Daybreakers right left and centre, she's got one of ours, but we don't know where," Luna answered. Shauna had to control her temper not to storm over to Luna and punch her lights out.   
  
Luna was just sitting there, acting as if everything was amusing. There was nothing funny about this. People were dead, and if they didn't do something then Chase could be next.  
  
"Could you stop her?" she asked Lucas.  
  
Lucas glanced over at her. "Why?"  
  
"The guy she has is my soulmate," Shauna answered. No one said anything. Lucas sighed heavily. Shauna looked at him, trying not to look too desperate. No one was ever going to let her forget this.   
  
After a few minutes silence his eyes met hers. "Yeah. All right."  
  
"How do you know where to find her?" Senna asked.   
  
Lucas looked at her. "I just know," he answered simply, and started heading out the door. Shauna followed, hoping they weren't already too late.  
  
* * *   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	8. Parts 15-16

Part 15  
  
Chase groaned, his head hurt like hell. He blinked several times, trying to focus on his surroundings. A cold wind was annoying him. Huh? Vampires didn't feel the cold, what the hell was going on?  
  
He shook his head in confusion, focusing on the rooftop of the building he was lying on. A small mousey looking girl was pacing up and down. He couldn't see her expression or her face.  
  
He sat up, frowning a little. He glanced over the edge of the building and wished he hadn't. They were on the roof of the high school gym, he could see the lights of the town twinkling below. He looked back to the crazy girl.   
  
What significance did this have, if any?   
  
"You could at least tell me what the hell is going on," he suggested, getting to his feet.  
  
The girl turned around to look at him, red eyes blazing wildly. "You're not him," she said sadly, as if the truth had finally sunk in.   
  
"I could have told you that," he snorted. "What good would killing me do? You're not gonna be able to kill the entire Night World - or those stupid damned Daybreakers either."  
  
She fixed him with a level stare. "You're *all* fucking stupid!" she hissed at him. "You're as bad as each other. You don't even stop to look at the little things."  
  
Chase sighed irritably, tuning out her insane ranting. So she'd had a run of bad luck when they'd made a mistake. Big deal. She should get over it and get on with her life. It wasn't the end of the world.   
  
She shook her head, irritated. "You just don't understand." She gave him a fairly pretty smile. "But it doesn't matter now." The smile turned into a smirk as she pulled a large custom made stake out of her jacket sleeve.  
  
Chase gulped, wondering if he could just out run her, but she'd attacked him twice, and there didn't seem to be anywhere to run to. If he backed up, he'd fall over the edge. It wouldn't kill him, but the fall would cause a lot of damage. It'd take him no more than a week to recover, but he didn't feel like falling off a building right now.   
  
The girl was advancing.   
  
* * *  
  
Part 16  
  
"Stop! Don't!"  
  
Shauna was panting as she pulled herself over the roof of the gym. She'd been irritated, and almost a little jealous, watching Lucas make his way up easily, like a money climbing trees. Unfortunately, humans had some limitations, and speed was one of them.  
  
The red eyed girl had a long wooden stake in her hand, Chase backed up almost to the edge of the building. She glanced around, looking for Lucas, but couldn't see him.   
  
Where the hell had he gone? He was supposed to be stopping this bitch!  
  
The girl turned to look at her, her red eyes blazing. "I don't fucking believe this!" she screeched. "How the - what - who - " She trailed off and shook her head, irritated.   
  
The face of the girl was exactly the same as the one on the picture they had found in research. Leila Feist. Hero and villain face to face.   
  
"Why?" Shauna asked, pulling herself to her feet, moving slowly closer. "You think killing these people will bring your soulmate back?" A bit of play on words, really, considering Lucas was hanging in the shadows somewhere, hopefully planning on stepping in some time soon. Vampires. Ugh. Why did they have to be so damn irritating?  
  
Leila sighed heavily. "I know that," she said in a sad voice. "But you people killed him, destroyed us when we had every right to be together. Once I can get rid of Lucas who isn't quite Lucas, I'm going to join him."  
  
~She's gonna kill herself once she's done,~ Shauna realised. She looked around, eyes searching the shadows.   
  
"Why bother? I'm right here."  
  
Lucas's voice came out of the darkness, followed by Lucas himself. Leila dropped her stake, just staring at him in utter disbelief. The next minute she was in his arms, clinging to him like she'd never let go.  
  
Shauna felt a small smile touching her lips. Chase wandered over to her, his own arms wrapping around her waste from behind. "You okay?" she asked softly.   
  
He nodded. "Just about."  
  
  
Lucas turned back to give them a vague smile. "I suppose I out to apologise for my soulmate's temporary lapse of sanity, but she'll be okay now. See ya." And with in a second, he'd gathered her into his arms, and they were gone.  
  
Shauna pulled away from Chase, starting to head after them. She stared in utter disbelief. "And that's *it*?" she screeched, outraged. "So she kills a bunch of people, walks off with her soulmate and lives happily ever after?"  
  
Chase chuckled. "What's your point?"  
  
Shauna turned and stared at him, still unable to believe the turn of events. "Jerk," she snapped.  
  
"Bitch," he shot back.  
  
She opened her mouth but before she could insult him again he'd grabbed her shoulders, pulled her close and kissed her. The white light of their soulmate connection sparked, and blotted out the rest of the world. Leila wasn't the only one to got to walk off with her soulmate.  
  
* * *  
  
A rewarding sense of calm seeped into Leila as she and Lucas walked off together into the night. It had all been worth it. The outcome wasn't what she had expected, but had turned out to be even better.  
  
A smile spread across her face as the rain began to fall.  
  
THE END.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
